This week-end brought an important event for the local rugby players as the MRFU looked to give them an important chance to prove their worth with a high profile Rugby week-end in Rome.

The National ‘A’ side travelled to Rome on Friday. The contingent made up exclusively of players who are involved with teams from the Cisk Lager National League had the opportunity to watch Italy U19 take on England U19. This match is important since one of the volunteers, Terrezio DeBenedictis who has helped the squad organise this tour, is involved in the coaching staff of the Italian National U19 squad.

Yesterday, Saturday 11th February, the team took on Accademia Roma, a Serie ‘B’ side who are fighting for promotion to Serie ‘A’ in a beautiful sports complex, Acquacetosa.

Later in the afternoon the local players watched another important Rugby encounter, this time the Six Nations game between Italy and England at the Stadio Flaminio.

The MRFU has been building this team for a while and recent successes such as the 57 - 0 win against Messina on Italian soil prove that the work is paying off.

The team has trained throughout the winter, notwithstanding the bad weather that has hit Malta over the last few weeks. In fact 3 of the last 5 sessions were held in rainy conditions and at times with hail falling on the players. This can be seen as the ideal preparation for a match in Italy since the weather will obviously be harsher than what we are used to in Malta.

The focus this season is to participate in a European Cup for amateur clubs, in fact the Union is expecting a reply within days to establish the date of the first match for the National A. The local boys and officials are looking forward to see the second string team emulate the efforts of the National team on the International scene, thus giving local players the exposure required to make the jump into top flight International Rugby.